


nenek nenek si bongkok tiga

by yoonminoml (fanficloverme96)



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Horror, Suspense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-14 05:21:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29040813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanficloverme96/pseuds/yoonminoml
Summary: In a rural village far, far away, Riku experiences some strange things at night.Particularly about his beloved Tenn-nii.
Relationships: Kujou Ten & Nanase Riku
Comments: 10
Kudos: 29





	1. one

**Author's Note:**

> To further help you visualize the story, at a certain point in the fic (you'll know), please listen to [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzrMoF6dbkQ) .
> 
> Also, refer to [this](https://www.google.com/search?q=baju+kurung+kampung+klasik&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwjGh_6ayr7uAhXU1XMBHbfWCY4Q2-cCegQIABAA&oq=baju+kurung+kampung+klasik&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzoCCAA6BAgAEB46BggAEAUQHjoGCAAQCBAeUPMFWPUhYLMjaAZwAHgAgAFViAHYB5IBAjEzmAEAoAEBqgELZ3dzLXdpei1pbWfAAQE&sclient=img&ei=b6cSYIaUKNSrz7sPt62n8Ag&bih=754&biw=1536&safe=off#imgrc=AcyRtE41AG7fIM) for visual reference for a certain character. 
> 
> Title can be directly translated to "the three-humpbacked grandmother" which is a classic Malay children nursery rhyme. If you're curious about the english translations, you can read it [here](https://www.mamalisa.com/?t=es&p=4287) . Take a listen, if you'd like ;)

The twins’ mother has a friend who lives in a small, rural village overseas. It is during the end of summer when their family visits her friend. Tenn and Riku have just recently turned 18.

During the trip, their parents had to leave to a neighboring village for several days to attend a village conference with the said friend. Since the twins are old enough to be left alone, the twins offered to stay at the friend’s house in the meantime.

Now, this is when Riku’s story begins.

Riku wakes up in the middle of the night one day and in his groggy state, he realizes the space beside him is empty. He sits up on the bed and looks around the darkened room. The room is lit up with only the moonlight streaming through the window’s glass panels and try as he might, he could not find Tenn anywhere in the bedroom.

“Tenn-nii…?” Riku calls out sleepily. He rubs his eyes and swings his legs off the mattress. His bare feet feel cold against the wooden floors, which creak at each step. The family friend does not practice the habit of wearing indoor shoes, so Riku is soon becoming more and more awake as he walks around the house with the chill seeping from his feet up.

“Tenn-nii? Where are you?” he calls out. He checks the kitchen and the toilet and finds both rooms to be empty. “Tenn-nii?” He spies the clock hanging on the wall and could barely make out the hands pointing to the numbers. It is just past midnight. Where could his brother be?

Instinctively, his head turns to the main doors. 

There’s no way...right?

Unable to ignore the unease in his heart, he quickly grabs his blanket, wraps it around his shoulders and quickly heads for the door. The cold breeze slaps his face the moment he opens it. He shivers and clenches his jaw to prevent himself from chattering as he hastily slips on his slippers. He climbs down the wooden stairs and begins walking around the house.

The family friend’s village has houses scattered in a way that neighbours are few and far in between. As he walks around the compound looking for the familiar pink head, all that surrounds him are trees and the few street lights that illuminate the outdoors. The soil crunches underneath his slippers as he walks around, retracing his steps to the places his brother and himself visited during their time in the village.

He checks the nearby river. The swing underneath the giant frangipani tree. The old well beside the house. Tenn remains nowhere to be found.

The unease in Riku’s heart only grows and grows. 

“Tenn-nii?!” he calls out, “Where are you? Come out, please. It’s not funny!” Riku has to be careful to not wander too far. The darkness seems much more intimidating when he is in an unfamiliar place so he makes sure he sticks to the routes he is at least more comfortable with.

That is until his eyes catch sight of a dirt trail in between groves of trees.

Unlike the rest of the places he went, the path is only lit by the moonlight above him and leads towards a place that Riku has yet to explore. His heart pounding in his chest, he teeters, rocking back and forth on his ankles as he considers his decision.

In the end, he steels his nerves and swallows heavily before he takes a decisive step forward. 

His Tenn-nii might be in there, needing him. He has to find him. 

He follows the trail, his eyes resolutely trained forward. The trees surrounding the path create long shadows on the path, adding to the illusion that Riku is not alone on this path. The hair on his neck stands and his heart races with each step, yet Riku continues further down the path.

The path eventually spreads out into a large empty field, and at the center of that field, illuminated by the moonlight, is none other than Tenn.

Tenn is barefooted, still dressed in nothing but like gown-like two-piece clothing that is lent to him. It is supposed to be worn as day clothes, but the humid weather of the village even at night causes Tenn to even wear it to sleep. The skirt that reaches just at his ankles is soiled with grass and dirt at the ends. There is a wide patterned scarf loosely draped on his hair and shoulders.

In that moment, Riku realizes three things.

There is music playing softly in the background. It sounds like a combination of drums, bells and chimes, originating from a source Riku could not pinpoint. 

Tenn is dancing to that music. He spins on his ankles and twirls around, his clothes billowing about as he dances. He sways his arms to the steady beat of the drum and moves his head following the eerie instrumental backing.

His expression is detached, save for the serene smile playing on his lips. 

“Tenn-nii…?” Riku calls out, walking into the field with uncertainty weighing his every step. “What are you doing?”

Tenn continues to dance to the music, ignoring Riku all together. 

“Tenn-nii, snap out of it,” Riku says, nervousness creeping into his voice, “It’s late and it’s far away from home. Come on. Let’s get back to the house, okay?” He reaches out a hand, but Tenn does not take it. He dances around Riku with the same gestures and detached expression, the serene smile never leaving his face.

“Tenn-nii -”

The music suddenly grows louder and louder. The beating of the drums seems to reverberate through the ground and echo off the trees. The chiming of the bells grows sharper and sharper to the point that Riku’s head starts to pound. The chanting that is previously soft and gibberish is now more pronounced, drilling itself into Riku’s mind.

Tenn continues to dance.

Tenn continues to smile.

Riku, he -

Riku wakes up with a start. He is in his room again, and the moonlight is now replaced by the sunlight softly streaming into the room. The space beside him on the bed is still empty. He hastily walks out of the room, his heart pounding a mile a minute. 

“Tenn-nii!”

“Riku?”

Tenn stares at him owlishly as he holds a tray in his hands. There are a couple of plates on the tray, holding presumably their breakfast.

“Y-you -” Riku stammers, “I - um… I didn’t see you in bed when I woke up and -”

“I was preparing breakfast,” Tenn explains, “Auntie said I can use the kitchen while she’s gone so…” He gestures to the tray. “Since you’re up, let’s eat.”

“Tenn-nii, did you go anywhere last night?”

Tenn tilts his head in confusion. “No, I didn’t. Why would I be? Going out alone at night in an unfamiliar place is dangerous, Riku. You know that.”

“...Right.” Riku runs a hand through his hair. “Was it a dream then?” he mumbles softly to himself.

“Riku?”

“No, it’s nothing.” Riku smiles at his brother. “Let’s eat.”

“Mm.”

Tenn places the tray of food onto the low table on the floor before he goes to the kitchen again to fetch the tea he brewed. Riku seats cross-legged on the floor as he watches him go. For some reason, his eyes begin to stray downwards.

And spot it.

The dirt and grass stains at the ends of Tenn’s skirt. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The setting takes place in a rural Malay village. For my own indulgence, let's just pretend the family friend lives somewhere in Southeast Asia. I'm not good with horror stories in general, but I adore the aesthetics and the atmospheric horror that comes from local ghost stories from where I am from.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this fic and its upcoming chapters~ 
> 
> Comments and kudos are appreciated and you can find me on Twitter at @tennssi0907 !


	2. two

On the second night after their parents left, Tenn announces he will fetch some water from the well behind the house.

“I can do it,” Riku offers, “You prepared dinner, so I should help with that.”

Tenn smiles before he shakes his head. “No need. You’ll help me wash the dishes later, so it’s fine. It’s not too far of a walk.” He pats Riku’s hair fondly. “Why don’t you help me clean the table and put the dishes into the basin while you wait?”

Riku juts out his bottom lip into a pout. “Alright…”

The house the family friend lives does not have a proper piping system, like most houses in this rural village she lives in. Instead, she relies on fetching water from the well daily - or weekly depending on whether there is heavy rain, she says - for her cooking and hygiene needs. The well requires quite a bit of a walk, following a small trail from the house to an area by the river. 

Tenn would be gone for at least five minutes.

He watches his brother climb down the stairs with a wooden bucket in one hand while the other hand lifts the batik sarong he is wearing away from his feet. Tenn slips on his slippers, switches on his flashlight and makes his way towards the well. Riku then turns back into the house and goes towards the low table where the empty plates are.

There are still leftovers on the plate - mostly from the fish that Tenn prepared for him. The spices used here are different from the one Riku is used to back in Japan so no matter how hard Tenn tries to emulate the cooking from back home, it doesn’t quite taste the same. Riku feels bad for not finishing the food Tenn had painstakingly prepared for him. Gathering the leftover fish into a plastic bag, Riku vows to finish it later without Tenn knowing.

He gathers the plates and is about to make his way to the basin in the kitchen when he hears it.

He hears the sound of footsteps on the floorboards. Or rather, he  _ feels  _ them. The floorboards underneath his feet vibrate a little, like it would if someone walks across them. Riku stands still and keeps silent as the sensation continues. His heart pounds louder in his chest when he realizes one thing.

The house is designed in a way that allows an empty space underneath the house itself. Raised on wooden stilts, the design is meant to avoid flooding especially during the monsoon season. Riku had seen houses where the owners would keep their cars underneath the house, or some old storage boxes. The family friend neither drives or keeps anything underneath her house so it remains empty.

The vibration that Riku feels feels as though it is coming from the other side of the floorboard, so if there is  _ anyone  _ walking, they are doing it from  _ under  _ the house with their feet attached above their heads. The idea brings immediate chills to Riku. It is an imagery he wishes to forget immediately after thinking it.

But Riku, unfortunately, is also too curious for his own good. 

If there is anyone under the house, Riku has to make sure it’s not an intruder, he reasons. There is only him and Tenn in this house and the nearest neighbour is still pretty far away. He places the plates onto the kitchen counter and grabs for the nearest object he sees - a broom.

He’ll just check, he reasons. He needs to make sure this house is safe for the family friend too. He can do as much as chase an intruder away, right? He won’t do anything reckless.

The vibration is louder underneath his feet and this only causes his nervousness to grow. Swallowing heavily, Riku pushes down on the feeling of unease rising up his throat and slowly makes his way towards the main door. He climbs down a couple of steps down the stairs, just enough he could peek under the house.

The vibration under his feet continues, even as he stands on the stairs. Steeling his nerve and gripping the broom in his hands tighter, Riku turns his head and peeks under the house.

At first, all he could see was an empty space. The moonlight shining down on him is enough to dispel some of the darkness outside and his eyes could adjust enough to make up the shapes of the wooden stilts and the soil on the ground.

And then, he sees it.

There is a figure standing underneath the house. It is tall and massive, covering almost every inch of Riku’s field of view. It reaches from the floors of the house to the soil underneath without even the smallest of gaps. 

Riku could see just enough to realize that the figure’s feet are attached to the floorboards while the head bends awkwardly against the soil. 

The vibration on the floorboards stops. Riku sucks in a sharp breath, too terrified to move from his spot. The figure slowly turns its head -

A hand pats him on the shoulder. Riku screams.

“Riku!” Riku turns around looking like a deer caught in headlights only to see Tenn standing behind him. The bucket in his hand is now filled to the brim with water. Tenn is looking at Riku in confusion.

“What are you doing?” he asks.

“T-Tenn-nii,” Riku stammers, “I...I…” He points under the house. “I thought I saw someone and -” He looks towards the shadows again and sees that the figure is gone, like it was never there in the first place. “Tenn-nii, were you under the house?”

Tenn frowns. “Why would I be under the house? There’s nothing there.” He peers at Riku. “You’re so pale, Riku. You look like you just saw a ghost.”

Riku swallows. Trying to regain his breathing, he shakes his head. “I’m fine. I guess...it was just my imagination.” He looks at the bucket in Tenn’s hand. “You’ve fetched the water? Let’s start cleaning the dishes and wash up.”

“Mm. Come on. Let’s go into the house.”

Riku follows Tenn into the house, still trying to catch his breath. The unease inside his heart does not fade away.

He thinks he feels another vibration underneath his feet. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Batik sarong looks like [this](https://www.google.com/search?q=batik+sarong&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwilw66dxsLuAhVlAbcAHX2-CpkQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=batik+sarong&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAA6BAgjECc6BQgAELEDOgQIABBDOgcIABCxAxBDUKzxBFjd_QRg5_8EaABwAHgAgAFPiAHxBpIBAjEymAEAoAEBqgELZ3dzLXdpei1pbWfAAQE&sclient=img&ei=IbwUYOWuNOWC3LUP_fyqyAk&bih=754&biw=1536&safe=off#imgrc=O8vnTu1wXLpsTM) .
> 
> The architecture of the house I was talking about can be seen [here](https://www.google.com/search?q=malay+house&safe=off&sxsrf=ALeKk01NjoXFFI68cVhjLnVsKWkigE9pWg:1611971615713&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiwo6ucxsLuAhVjzjgGHc4oAwEQ_AUoAXoECBQQAw&biw=1536&bih=754#imgrc=GMsLiW51Cxh3LM) .


	3. three

On the third night, it is Riku’s turn to prepare dinner. Unlike Tenn who is skilled in adapting even in cooking, Riku’s unfamiliarity with the local ingredients means he can only prepare the simplest of dishes he could imagine - rice, fish and vegetable stir fry - and it is only Tenn’s reassurance that he will like whatever Riku prepares that motivates Riku to cook anything at all.

Dumping the frying wok and the spatulas into the wash basin to be attended to later, Riku carefully places the plates of food onto the tray. Nodding in satisfaction towards his own handiwork, Riku grabs the tray in his hands and makes his way to the living area where the twins would typically have their meals.

“Tenn-nii,” he calls out, “Dinner is ready!”

He doesn’t get a response. He places the tray on the low table before rising back to his feet. “Tenn-nii?” he tries again, “Where are you?”

He peeks into their shared room and finds it empty. He looks around, making sure that he checks every nook and cranny in the house but again, he fails at finding Tenn. There is an uneasy feeling of deja vu settling in his chest. 

If there is anything strange that happens tonight, it would be the third night in the row. Riku chews his bottom lip nervously, praying to whatever deity there is for his parents and their family friend to quickly return.

“Tenn-nii -”

“Riku.”

Riku sighs in relief when he hears Tenn’s voice. “Tenn-nii, I’m here. Where are you?”

“Riku...come here.” Tenn’s voice sounds a little faraway. Riku frowns, searching carefully where the source of the voice may be. 

“Tenn-nii -” He pauses when he finally sees something in the distance. Standing outside of the house is a figure with a songket wrap draped loosely around the person’s person. From the familiar batik sarong, the loose three-quarter sleeved top and the head full of pink hair, Riku knows instantly that the figure standing in the distance is none other than Tenn.

But why is he standing outside so far away, and why is his back towards Riku? What is Tenn looking at?

Riku steps forward to stand by the main doorway. “Dinner is ready,” he calls out, “Tenn-nii, what are you doing? Come back inside.”

Tenn does not answer but he moves his head slightly. It is not enough for Riku to see his brother’s face fully, but Riku could see a hint of a smile. “Riku,” Tenn says again, as though he is calling for Riku, “Riku…”

“Is something wrong, Tenn-nii?” Riku gingerly slips on the bamboo sandals borrowed from the family friend and climbs down the wooden steps. “If you’re looking for me, I’m right here. Did you not notice?”

Tenn still does not turn around. The sense of unease returns to Riku’s heart. Against his better judgement, however, Riku continues to walk towards his brother. His hand is already outstretched to tap Tenn on the shoulder and hopefully draw his attention away from...whatever it is that he is doing.

“Tenn -”

Riku feels a tap on his shoulder, startling him so badly that he jumps where he stands before he whirls around. 

He blinks owlishly in surprise when he sees Tenn standing behind him, confusion written all over his brother’s face. There is a flashlight in Tenn’s hand. Strangely, there is no songket wrap draped on his shoulders.

“Riku, where are you going?” Tenn asks quizzically, “I was waiting for you to call me for dinner. I’ve been in our room the whole time but you never called me.” He looks around them in confusion. “What are you doing outside?”

“E-eh? Tenn-nii, weren’t you just -” Riku whirls around again to look at the figure he had been looking at before.

Only to find the spot behind him empty without any trace of there ever was a person near him.

“Tenn-nii,” Riku says in a thin voice, “Did you...see someone in front of me while you were walking towards me?”

Tenn merely furrows his brow, looking even more confused than ever. “No, there wasn’t. Should there be any?”

Riku’s heart is pounding so hard that it is the loudest thing he hears. Without saying a word to Tenn, he grabs his brother’s hand and practically drags Tenn back inside the house, refusing to look behind him. 

During dinner, the hair on his neck remains standing.

Later that night, he hugs Tenn tightly on the bed and could not fall asleep for a long time. 


	4. four

The water feels cold against his hands. 

Riku puts away the dishes he washed from the basin and onto the dish rack in front of him. The twins have just finished their dinner and it is Riku’s turn to wash the dishes that particular night. Despite the strange events that happened for the past few nights, Riku is currently in a good mood.

How could he not be? His parents are to return tomorrow. The twins will no longer be alone in this house in this lonely village.

He will no longer have to feel unease. 

Riku dries his hand with a small towel before making his way to the living space. Tenn is currently washing up in the bathroom so Riku figures he waits for his brother in their shared room. Maybe he will ask Tenn to read him a bedtime story. Tenn will tease him but he will also indulge Riku and fulfil his childish request.

He smiles, already looking forward to it. 

The floorboards creak underneath his feet as he walks towards the bedroom. His foot barely passes the doorway when he hears humming. 

Riku turns his head to the side and is surprised to see Tenn sitting on the staircase at the main entrance. The boy has his back towards him again. One of his hands is holding a comb, brushing it through his pink locks. Tenn is not looking at him as he hums a song, seemingly unaware of Riku’s presence.

Strange. Riku is sure Tenn just left for the bathroom not too long ago. He didn’t even hear Tenn get out of it either.

“Tenn-nii, are you done with your bath already?” he asks.

Tenn continues to hum, as though he never heard Riku call out for him.

“Tenn-nii…?”

He steps closer and as he does, the humming becomes louder. Come to think of it, the song sounds  _ incredibly  _ familiar. Riku has heard that song before. Somewhere...in a dream -

Tenn danced to this song before. During the first night the twins spent alone in this house. Tenn had gone missing and Riku had gone out to find him. When he did, Tenn had been standing in the middle of a field seemingly in the middle of nowhere, his body swaying to a tune that Riku could not pinpoint the source.

The very same tune Tenn is humming right now.

It  _ wasn’t  _ a dream, in the end.

Riku stays rooted in the spot, too terrified to move. Tenn continues to hum and comb his hair, the melody of the song growing more and more eerie when he begins to sway his body slightly to the tune. Riku swallows heavily as fear grips his heart tightly.

Then, the humming stops.

Without fully looking at him, Tenn turns his head slightly to the side.

“Riku, is that you?” Tenn asks, “Come here, Riku. I want to see your face.”

Riku stays still, unable to bring himself to move forward. Something isn’t right about this situation. Something isn’t right about  _ Tenn _ . His voice had sounded a little different when he spoke - a little distorted, a little bit too high pitched. It sounds  _ alien. _

Whoever it is that is calling out for him, sitting on that staircase while humming an eerie song, it isn’t Tenn.

“Riku?” Tenn calls him again, “Come here...Tenn-nii really wants to see you.”

Clenching his jaw, Riku finally forces himself to move.

_ Away  _ from Tenn. 

He breaks into a run towards their room and practically shoves himself under the blankets. He doesn’t dare to look up. He doesn’t dare to even open his eyes. Something is wrong with this house. Something is wrong with Tenn.

The thing out there, possibly waiting for him, is definitely not his older brother.

He squeezes his eyes shut and focuses on calming down his breathing and the rapid pounding of his heart.

_ Mom...Dad.. _ .please come home soon, he pleads,  _ It’s scary. I’m scared… _

Like life is trying to grant him the smallest of mercies, Riku finally falls asleep -

\- unaware of the figure watching him beside his bed, a cold smile playing on their lips. 

The humming continues, seeping into the red haired boy’s long, restless dreams. 


	5. five

Their parents and the family friend finally return a couple of hours before noon.

Riku greets his parents enthusiastically, giggling when his mother ruffles his hair affectionately while his father pats his back with fond tenderness. Tenn lingers at the back until Riku is done before he approaches his parents, hugging them one by one. Both twins greet the family friend politely, who returns the greeting with a polite smile of her own.

“Thank you for taking care of the house,” she says in her accented Japanese, “ _ Makcik  _ brought some snacks for you two. Let’s have them during lunch.”

“Thank you,  _ Makcik _ ,” Tenn and Riku chime together.

Tenn decides to help the family friend in preparing lunch. Left with nothing to do, Riku decides to linger around his parents in the meantime. He finds them crouched by the staircase, laying a plate of fruits at the foot of the stairs. Riku tilts his head in curiosity, his eyes noticing the fruits placed a distance from each other to form a trail. The trail starts from the staircase and circles the house before leading towards an isolated dirt path towards the well.

Riku also notices that the fruits come from the stock of fruits he had seen in the kitchen. 

“Mom, Dad, what are you doing?” he asks at last.

His mother spares him a glance. “We’re placing offerings around the house. Didn’t you two the same thing while we’re gone?”

...eh?

His father lifts his gaze from the plate of fruits to look at him. He furrows his brows in slight confusion. “Why do you look so surprised? Didn’t  _ Makcik _ tell you to do this before we left?”

Did she? Riku does not remember. But then again, now that he thinks about it, he  _ does _ remember the family friend speaking to him before she left. She told told him how to get water, and to remember to light up the oil lamps and to -

-never eat the fruits in the kitchen.

Riku is not a big fan of the local fruits the family friend keeps in her kitchen to begin with, so he doesn’t even pay them much attention. He  _ thinks  _ Tenn might have inquired about them once or twice if Riku would like to have them for dinner, but the memory of that conversation is blurry at best.

Including the memory of her telling him to use those fruits for something else instead.

“Um...is there a reason behind these offerings?” Riku asks instead, trying to keep his voice light, “What are they for anyway?”

“It’s the village’s local tradition,” his father explains, “The folks around here believe that this village is also the home to spirits.”

Riku pauses. “...spirits?”

“Mm,” his mother chimes in, “They believe that these grounds belong to their ancestors who protect them from harm, but in return, these spirits must frequently receive offerings. Not everyone in the village believes in this tradition, but your  _ Makcik  _ still does.”

There is a feeling of unease creeping back into Riku’s heart. He eyes the fruit trail and how it passes through under the house.

The same place where he feels the vibration underneath his feet and where he thinks he sees someone underneath.

“...for her to still believe in such things…” Riku whispers, “Are there consequences of not doing these offerings? She didn’t tell me.”

Or she did but Riku did not remember.

His parents look at each other for a moment before looking back at Riku.

“If I remember correctly,” his mother begins, “The spirits will cause mischief if you forget once or twice. If you forget for too long, it will be seen as a sign of blatant disrespect to the spirits which will undoubtedly anger them.”

“When that happens,” his father adds, “That is when the trouble starts.”

“Trouble?” Riku echoes, already feeling uneasy. 

“Do you remember what she told us?” his father asks his mother, “All those scary ghost stories she likes to tease us with.”

His mother shudders. “How could I think she’s teasing when she always tells us those stories with a serious face? She says the spirits can make you do strange things like...singing and dancing to some strange song.”

_ Tenn, dancing in an open field by himself, his smile detached as the music grew louder and louder - _

“Or imitating someone you know to trick you into coming towards them -”

_ Tenn, standing with his back towards Riku in the distance - _

_ Tenn, sitting in the same position, calling for Riku in a voice that sounds alien - _

“They’ll basically try to lure you into the spirit realm,” his mother finishes, “Come to think of it, she told us to never hum this one specific melody for too long because supposedly that will only attract more malice into the house.”

Riku’s mother hums a short tune long enough for Riku to instantly recognize it to be the one Tenn keeps on humming that night.

“I mean, those are all just superstition though, right?” his father says, “I mean, we do it to be respectful, of course, but personally I don’t believe in -” He stops when he notices the look on Riku’s face. “Riku…? What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Riku flinches at the word and instinctively turns around.

Standing behind him is none other Tenn.

He is wearing the same detached and serene smile as he did during that very first night. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Makcik (pronounced mah'-chee') directly translates into auntie, but it can also be used to call an older woman respectfully (usually middle-aged ones because if you call someone in their 20s or 30s as makciks, they might get offended xD).
> 
> also spirit offerings are typically done by the older generations - nowadays, such practice is considered mere superstition. 
> 
> teehee i hope you enjoyed this little fun horror fic i made. it's short and sweet, no? hehe. as usual kudos/comments/bookmarks are appreciated and you can find me on Twitter at @tennssi0907 !


End file.
